A Small Yellow Highlighter
by The Genius Mage
Summary: Light Joshyme. Rhyme knew every piece of the artist's arsenal had to be used at some point. She just didn't know when. Writing challenge from Jaunea.


_~*A Small Yellow Highlighter*~_

A writing utensil. Something so insignificant in the form of a yellow highlighter, a small one at that.

Now, don't get her wrong, Rhyme knows every single piece of the artist's arsenal should be used at some point. She just didn't know when to use the highlighter. It really irritated her, which was rare for the youngest of the Bito siblings.

Her room was bright, as expected. Sunlight flickered in through a gap in her thin, almost transparent white curtains. The golden radiance touched everything it could, and seemed almost like a great spotlight that let Rhyme see the dancing dust motes as they twirled in their silent dances.

She smiled, her eyes drifting from the sunlight to the small yellow highlighter. Perhaps she could do a picture on sunshine, with the highlighter performing the difficult iridescent glow of the great yellow star?

Or maybe not. She frowned slightly now. Everyone at the art contest that the aspiring artist planned to enter would probably use a yellow highlighter as sunlight. She wanted to do something different, more…unique.

Rhyme sighed, dropping the highlighter onto the old gray carpet. She turned around to reach up one of her shelves for an unused notepad, and when she faced the table again, the highlighter was back on the desk.

"What the…?" She picked it up and examined it, almost like the innocent yellow device was some sort of magical charm.

"You know, Rhyme, it's not nice to just drop things you don't want to use."

Rhyme felt her smile brighten against her will, and she turned her head to give a teasing glare to Joshua. "Don't be silly, Joshua. I was going to pick it back up. It has to be used for the contest, after all."

Rhyme sat down with Joshua beside her at the table. The violet eyed teen was studying the materials in front of her. He picked up her box of supplies with a bored expression.

"Colored pencils, paints, markers, and highlighters. Are all of these necessary?" He pushed back a strand of his dusk colored hair.

"Well, no." Rhyme said with a shrug. "But if you use all of them, you get extra points."

Joshua leaned forward on the table, supporting his head on his hands. "Hmm."

Rhyme tried to ignore him, picking up a colored pencil and sketching fields of green grass that dominated almost half the writing pad. Each movement was slow and precise, and she was so absorbed in her work that she missed Joshua's devious smirk her way.

"Rhyme, dear."

Her reply was an unintelligible hum.

Joshua circled her waist with one arm, and with the other he handed her the highlighter. "It's obvious what you can do," he said in a lower tone.

Rhyme felt the blush touch her face before she could help it. "Um-huh?"

"Fields of green, am I right?" He brushed the featureless white above the emerald fields. "Why not create dandelions?"

Rhyme blinked. That _would_ be a different way to use the little highlighter; she could create the bright heads of dandelions waving in the breeze…

As soon as she thought of it, the idea was perfect. She returned Joshua's loose hug with one of her own.

"Thanks, Joshua. It's a perfect idea."

The Composer gave a soft smile in response, watching her create dark green dandelion stems before using the highlighter to create the flowery yellow tops. The dandelions seemed to be caught in some never ending dance of theirs, bowing their golden heads to their partners and tossing and twirling about.

Joshua could probably read her thoughts and see it was inspired by the twisting dust motes in the golden sunlight.

Rhyme continued to sketch until every tiny petal was captured, and then she put down the highlighter and drew a couple of silvery dandelions that were shedding their soft, fluffy seeds. The sky was covered in thick white clouds, but the sun peeked through and illuminated a few of the drifting seeds that were being carried away on the same wind that bent the dandelions in their ballet.

Placing down the yellow highlighter after using it to emphasize the edges of the sunlight, she leaned back and crossed her arms behind her head. "That's one of my favorite things, Joshua."

He opened one eye. "Oh? What is?"

Rhyme gestured to the beautiful drawing. "The dandelions. I like the yellow ones, but the fluffy white ones are the absolute best. It's so peaceful, you know, just watching them drift. I liked to find some and make a wish on them. There's nothing softer than dandelion seeds." She gave him a serene smile, and Joshua sat up fully.

"Nothing softer? What if I proved you wrong?"

Rhyme picked up the highlighter again and absentmindedly twirled it in between her fingers. "How are you going to do that?"

Joshua stood up, slowly facing her, and she registered the sly smirk on his face. "Hmm. Alright. Close your eyes."

Rhyme shrugged but did as she was told, closing her eyes. She longed to peek through the temporary veil of darkness, but Joshua would kill her. She thought she heard a gentle whooshing noise, but maybe it was her curtain in the wind due to the open window.

Joshua's tone was highly amused, and she heard his giggle. "Okay, Rhyme. Before you open your eyes, what do I get if I prove you wrong?"

Rhyme kept her eyes shut tight. "Oh I don't know, Joshua. What about…I owe you one?"

"That I can pull out on you anytime?"

"Guess so." She said guardedly.

"Hehe. Okay, dear, open your eyes."

Rhyme did so, and she gasped. Joshua was leaning back against the wall, looking utterly bored, with his wings extended. It was the first time; in all of the time she had known him, that she had ever got to see his wings. She hadn't even been sure he had had wings before then.

They had feathers, long and thin, but they had a strangely sharp and dangerous edge to them. It gave them a rather Reaper-like appearance, despite being made from feathers like the Angels. Also…

They were silver.

No, not silver. Not gray or dusky white or ashen even. It was the same, hard to define color of his hair. Rhyme stood up and walked over to him in awe.

"You can extend your wings in the RG?"

Joshua nodded. "I sure can."

"Why didn't you-"

"No reason." Joshua said with a smug grin.

Rhyme realized suddenly what the point of this whole thing was, and timidly reached a hand out to touch his wings. She noticed Joshua closed his eyes as she did so, and without opening them, asked her, "Well?"

She knew immediately he had won, like usual, because the feathers were impossibly downy soft. She reluctantly pulled her hand back before it got awkward. "You win?"

Joshua smirked triumphantly, opening his eyes and sitting down with her at the vacant chair at the table. Rhyme realized the highlighter was still in her other hand, and she tossed it playfully at the Composer.

"Please don't tell me you planned this and read my thoughts or something."

"Maybe."

~***~

_**To think all of this started over a **_**small yellow highlighter**_**. This was a writing challenge from Jaunea, obviously the challenge being, "a small yellow highlighter". It had to be Joshyme too.**_

_**Anyway, for those who insist on this being set somewhere, perhaps it was set during Songs and Poetry, perhaps not.**_

_**Want to review? If this is bad I mean…gee...I got a highlighter as a prompt. Go easy on me.**_


End file.
